Good morning, Gentle Reader. Two weeks ago I offered a ‘Wellness Community’ a poem. Since then I have been holding the concept of ‘Silence.’ This morning I will share with you some of what has emerged into my consciousness in response to my holding ‘Silence.’ First, here is the poem that I shared with the ‘Community.’
Silence Silence soothes heals the fevered nerves balms hurt feelings.
The comfort and calm the serenity and repose the tranquility and peace that silence offers is a vitalizing tonic the human spirit needs. –George Kaitholil
‘Silence’ is the ‘absence of’ and the ‘presence of’ sound and noise. Silence involves ‘waiting’ and ‘acting.’ ‘Silence’ involves one waiting in the ‘absence of’ in order to hear the faint whispers of comfort, encouragement, forgiveness, laughter, insight and guidance (there are more, but these will suffice for now).
‘Silence’ involves ‘acting’ – as in telling someone or something to ‘Shut Up!’ or in inviting someone to bring his or her voice or in speaking one’s truth or in verbally offering forgiveness or in verbally accepting the forgiveness offered (again, there are more, but these will suffice for now).
‘Silence’ is a gift you can give to yourself – a gift you can savor and enjoy and a gift that can soothe, heal and provide balm, comfort, calm, tranquility and repose. ‘Silence’ can help calm a noisy mind and a noisy heart. ‘Silence’ must be nurtured and sustained as a practice and discipline if these gifts are to be offered to you.
We busy-body, noise-full, and distract-full human beings often seek out (or is it hunt for) ‘Silence.’ We rarely find and experience it fully. ‘Silence’ is timid and elusive and she quickly vanishes when her sibling ‘noise’ appears. As fragile as ‘Silence’ is she is necessary for our sustenance and survival. ‘Noise’ dominates and depletes, ‘Silence’ supports and nurtures. Today, more than ever before in human history we need to cultivate the practice and discipline of ‘Silence.’ ‘Silence’ is a major tap-root that nurtures and sustains us as we strive to live in a noise-filled, busyness-filled, distraction-filled, and addiction-filled world. WE NEED ‘SILENCE’ NOW!
Now there is a paradox (why is there always an ‘and’ or a ‘paradox’ or both). We seek and need ‘Silence’ and we also respond as Pascal did when he said: ‘The eternal silence of the infinite spaces terrifies me.’ Simply stated, the paradox is that we run from ‘Silence’ because we know that ‘Silence’ if embraced will reveal our real selves to us (one of a number of things that she will reveal to us about ourselves). ‘Silence’ heals and accuses. ‘Silence’ soothes and disturbs. ‘Silence’ reveals our virtues and our vices.
Where might we look for ‘Silence’?
‘Seek and you will find.’ I have found this to be true. I seek and find ‘Silence’ in my mind when I focus my attention on one person, thought or experience at a time. I am, like all of us are, whelmed over by multiple demands, noises, distractions and experiences – all seeking my attention. My focusing on ‘one thing’ supports my silencing the ‘noise’ that is whelming me over.
Searcher-Seeker 